


The Short Botanical Courtship of Lorne and Parrish

by Slybrarian



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Alternate Universe, First Time, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-11-21
Updated: 2009-11-21
Packaged: 2017-10-03 13:15:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,121
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18521
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Slybrarian/pseuds/Slybrarian
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"They used to be on a team together, but they only made it through one mission before Lorne up and decided he had found his one true love or something," John said with a snort and a roll of his eyes. Lorne flipped him off.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Short Botanical Courtship of Lorne and Parrish

Evan didn't know what had happened. One minute he had been settling in to his new job and his new team. The next he found himself falling hard for his botanist. It didn't make any sense at all.

It had started out simply enough. Evan had just arrived in Atlantis a week before, along with the rest of the second wave of the expedition. He could already tell that this was going to be the best assignment he had ever had, a perfect combination of responsibility and front-line action. Like most of his peers in the regular Air Force, he would be the executive officer of a reasonably large unit, albeit one composed primarily of Marines; he would also be leading an exploratory team. He had been a bit surprised to learn that he would have a botanist on his team, but it made sense given the importance of local produce in keeping Atlantis fed. He didn't mind doing that kind of work - in fact, much to his dismay he found he felt quite the opposite.

Evan met David Parrish along with the rest of his team a day before their first mission, which was supposed to be a fairly simple one. He seemed like a nice enough guy, if a bit over-excited at the thought of getting to go off-world. Evan thought he would calm down once he actually started going through the gate and realized that most planets weren't all that special. It didn't work out like that at all.

Every minute Parrish found some new thing to exclaim about. "Oh, Major, look - a mutant daffodil! Wow! This tree exhibits signs of radiation-resistant sap! That can't be right - this bush has blue berries instead of orange ones!" It should have been exasperating, and it was a little bit. It was also horribly endearing. He was so earnest about it all, so thrilled to be out there on the cutting edge of human knowledge. It reminded Evan of himself, before it had become clear that off-world travel mostly meant boring mines, territorial Lizard People, and snakes in your head. Not only that, but Evan found himself watching as Parrish all but fondled various plants and wondering what else those fingers could do.

Needless to say, that was not the sort of thoughts that a team leader was supposed to have about his scientist, no matter what rumors at the SGC said.

Fortunately - for values of 'fortunately' that were adjusted by experience with other sorts of alien disaster - the mission was cut short when Parrish somehow managed to trip over a dead Wraith. Evan protectively pulled Parrish close before he even knew what he was doing and promptly hustled the shocked man back to the safety of Atlantis. In the light of day Parrish seemed even paler than usual and Evan wanted to sit beside him and hug him until he felt better.

Sheppard had different ideas, of course, since he was in one of his more manic 'leave no man behind' moods. Evan found himself immediately returning the planet with a jumper full of marine and Sheppard's team. Because Sheppard was an _asshole_ \- and, okay, because Sheppard trusted Evan - he assigned Evan to watch over Doctor McKay. Evan put up with thirty minutes of non-stop bitching about radiation, heat, and walking which mostly served to prove that McKay was the diametric opposite of Parrish and that Sheppard was still as batshit insane as he had been when Evan first met him.

Then Evan got stunned. It was something of a relief, really.

He came to several hours later in the middle of some sort of weird three-way hostage situation. By the time it was resolved, Sheppard's missing lieutenant was still MIA, but otherwise everyone was fine. Sheppard had picked up a stray as well.

"Is he gonna be staying for a while?" Evan said as they walked from the jumper bay to the infirmary. He eyed the hulking man walking in front of them suspiciously.

"Yeah, looks like it," Sheppard said in a tired voice. "Beckett wants to look his back over again, and he seems like a decent enough guy. Even with, you know, the whole hostage thing."

Evan nodded. Stranger decisions had been made, like the one to put the First Prime of Apophis on the flagship exploration team. If Sheppard was going to give him the benefit of the doubt, Evan would too. "I'll arrange for guest quarters to be set up and a security detail put in place. Although...."

Sheppard looked at Evan when he trailed off. "Yeah?"

"If you don't mind, sir, I'd like to put the debriefing off until tomorrow. It's been a long day, and I'd like to check on Doctor Parrish before I hit the sack."

"Oh? Why's that?"

Evan wasn't sure of that himself, but he said, "He was on his first off-world mission and he tripped over a Wraith, sir. It was probably a bit of a shock."

Sheppard looked at him askance. "It was already dead."

"Still, a Wraith. And, you know, he's a civilian, chances are he's never seen a dead body before. It could be a traumatic experience."

"Traumatic experience," Sheppard repeated. "Our ship nearly plunged into a star a week ago and you think he's going to be traumatized now?"

"Ah." Evan had to admit, it did sound a bit silly when he heard it aloud. "It was more up close?" he said, not sounding too convince of his reasoning himself.

Sheppard chuckled. "Whatever. Sure, go ahead. I'd rather have people overprotective of the civilians than the opposite. Also, between you and me, the longer I can put off a formal debriefing the better. Caldwell's probably going to throw a fit over Ford getting away."

Quietly, Evan asked, "Need me to cover for you, sir?"

"Nah. It's not like he can do anything but complain. Thanks, though."

"You're welcome, sir."

The post-mission infirmary checkup was the same as it ever was, even if the walls were a different color. The medics took his blood, shined a light in his eyes, checked his temperature, pulse, and blood pressure, waved a scanner over his neck to make sure he hadn't somehow contracted a case of snake, and in general poked and prodded him for twenty minutes. Once he was released he took a quick shower and set out to hunt down his botanist. His team's botanist. Whatever.

Parrish wasn't in his quarters, despite the fact that it was past local midnight. Knowing how scientists tended to act, Evan checked the botany labs next. Sure enough, Parrish was there, working on some sort of automated watering device hanging above several empty trays.

"Hey, doc," Evan said as he approach. "What are ya doing?"

"Hmm? Oh, Major!" Parrish grinned broadly and Evan found himself smiling back. "I'm just getting this set up. We don't have any samples to put in them yet, but we will sooner or later and I was up anyways, so I figured I would get a head start."

"Oh, that's cool."

"Yes, it is." Parrish looked at him expectantly, then said, "Did you need something?"

"I just wanted to check on you and make sure you were doing okay."

Parrish frowned. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, you know, dead Wraith, it might have been a bit of a shock." Upon saying that, Evan realized that Parrish might take it the wrong way, and hastily added, "Not that I think you're easily frightened or anything, but some people can be fine at first and then freak out hours later."

Parrish, who was clearly doing anything but freaking out, nodded slowly. "I'm fine, but thank you for your concern." Frowning even more deeply, he added, "Although from what I heard, I should be asking you if you're all right. Were you really shot?"

"It was just a stunner, nothing to worry about. It didn't even hurt as much as a zat."

"Oh." Parrish didn't look completely convinced that was the case. Evan wasn't sure he could blame him, either, because Evan himself wasn't entirely sure he was thinking straight.

Evan ran a hand through his hair. "So, you're okay, I'm okay, I guess everyone's okay then."

Parrish smiled. "Apparently so, yes."

"Since that's the case, I think I'm going to go get some sleep." Without thinking Evan patted Parrish on the shoulder. The other man flushed almost imperceptibly. "You should to, doc. You've been up almost as long as I have. I can't imagine your water machine can't wait until morning."

"It can," Parrish said, already neatly packing up the tools he had been using. "I was only up because I was waiting for you to return anyways."

"Really? Why?"

Parrish shrugged. "It's the sort of thing teammates do, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is," Evan said, irrationally pleased that Parrish already felt so much a part of the team to wait up for him. Well, no, the 'you' had probably been 'you guys', not Evan specifically. But it was close enough. "Come on, I'll walk you to your quarters."

Evan knew Parrish was a grown man who really didn't need to be escorted to his quarters. It didn't stop him from doing it, though, and Parrish didn't object.

The next day Evan did his best to keep himself busy with work. It wasn't too hard. Among other things, Sheppard's filing system was non-existent and since the SGC had yet to see fit to give them so much as a corporal for administrative work it fell on Evan to try to make sense of it. He also had to deal with the Marines, half of whom were still getting settled in while the other half were merrily going about being Marines and thus causing trouble. It meant that there wasn't too much time for Evan to think about David - about _Parrish_ for most of the day, at least not consciously. It seemed like he spent half the day with his subconscious telling him that he really should go check on David - Parrish - oh, fine, David.

Evan gave in eventually and strolled down to botany once more. David was there and so were a few other botanists, but Evan didn't pay any attention to them at all. He was far too busy watching David's long fingers as he stroked some kind of pinkish plant that looked almost identical to the dildo Evan had smuggled into the city.

"Oh, Major Lorne!" David said when he finally looked up from his specimen. A surprised smile appeared on his face. "What can we do for you?"

"I, uh," Evan said, trying to purge his mind of impure thoughts. "I was wondering if you wanted to go have dinner?"

"I'd like that very much. Let me put this back under one of the lamps."

"What is it?" Evan asked.

"Something Lieutenant Sheffield's team brought home. Here, feel it." Before Evan could stop him David took hold of his wrist and guided his hand to touch the plant. It was warm and, much to Evan's horror, seemed to throb and pulse under his fingers. David grinned broadly. "Cool, isn't it? It reacts to human touch, we don't know why."

"Yeah, cool," Evan croaked. It was about then that he decided the universe probably hated him.

David put his phallic plant under a grow lamp and then they were off to the mess hall. Supper turned out to be some sort of beef stew, only it didn't taste exactly like beef and Evan didn't recognize some of the vegetables in it. There was also cornbread, although it was blue instead of yellow, fruits that were from Earth but still tasted a bit odd after being freeze-dried and shipped between galaxies, and cookies that surprisingly were completely normal. David enjoyed it all with quiet, pleased moans and breathy sighs that he didn't have any right to be making in public where people other than Evan could hear them.

Not that Evan wanted to hear them.

They talked as they ate, starting off with the usual questions like "why would you possibly volunteer to go to another galaxy?" David was there because he thought it was an amazing opportunity to advance science and see the universe, never mind the life-sucking aliens; Evan said he came because of duty and excitement and the fun of exploring strange new worlds, leaving off the way Sheppard had made sad puppy-dog eyes at him and how Evan had thought it best to leave the galaxy before Colonel Edwards discovered who had replaced his Rogaine with Nair.

"Do you mind if I ask you a question, Major?" David said.

"Go ahead," Evan said with a shrug and a nod.

"Is there a reason why I didn't go with the rest of the team yesterday when you returned to the planet?" Before Evan could reply, David quickly added, "I know I'm a civilian, I'm just asking because Doctor McKay went with his team and after what you said last night I wondered if I'd given you the impression I wasn't up for it."

"No!" Evan said instantly. "No, not at all. It's just that it was pretty much a combat mission instead of scientific. Sure, Doctor McKay went along, but he's got a lot of field experience." He had also been mostly useless, Evan didn't add. He was fairly certain that McKay's performance hadn't been typical, because friend or not Colonel Sheppard wouldn't be taking him off-world if he was a liability.

"I see," David said with a slow nod. "I suppose that makes sense. Sooner or later we're bound to be in a situation where I can't just be sent home, though."

"Yeah, you are," Evan agreed. He tried not to think too much about that or about the numerous civilian SG team members who had died over the years. "That's why you had to be certified to use your sidearm and for physical fitness. We don't need to rush things when we don't have to, though."

"Fair enough, I suppose." Parrish got a thoughtful look. "Still, if you don't think I'm as prepared as I could be, is there any way I could get more training?"

Evan thought about referring him to the beginning self-defense courses taught by Teyla and Staff Sergeant Ko. They would help David learn the kind of skills he was most likely to need if his basic firearms training didn't suffice and prepare him for more advanced training if he wanted it. Many other civilians took part in them and it was what any other team leader probably would have done, assuming one of their own marines didn't volunteer first.

Instead what Evan did was say, "Sure. If you want, I can help you myself. What's a good time for you?"

That was how Evan found himself with a daily date to teach David how to shoot and fight and do other useful life-saving skills. It was, perhaps, a bit excessive to do it that often, but there was quite a lot he needed to learn and not much time before their next mission. It was also probably a waste of his time, since he was supposed to be doing more important things and could have delegated the job, but he was the one who set everyone's schedules and if he wanted to take the time to see to it personally it was his decision. It was productive, at least, which was more than you could say about anything Sheppard and McKay ever got up to.

The next day, Evan taught David a few simple exercises and stretches that would help him get ready for more strenuous activities later. He was pleased to note that David was remarkably flexible - purely for professional reasons, of course. At the next session, Evan took David down to the firing range. He was already reasonably skilled with his sidearm, so Evan started him working on the P90. He wasn't a great shot, but not a bad one either, and he learned to disassemble, clean, and reassemble the weapon without a hitch. Since they were training in the afternoon, it only made sense that both days they went for dinner afterward.

Session number three started off normal enough. They stretched and warmed up, then Evan started to drill David, although not in the way he wanted to. No, wait - exactly in the way he wanted to, which was in a completely professional manner as befitting his position as team leader. His position being frequently pressed up against David's lithe body. Not that he was paying more attention to David's body that was necessary, certainly not to the way he'd occasionally get flashes of belly and thigh whenever David's shirt or exercise shorts got bunched up as they practiced, nor to the way David's skin started to glisten and his breath came faster the longer they worked.

Except he was. Evan was doomed.

"Okay, okay, I think I know what I did wrong that time," David said. They were practicing how to escape holds, with some success. David kept proving able to bend in ways Evan hadn't imagined, although he probably would be imagining them for quite some time. "Can we try again?"

"Sure thing," Evan said, voice a little rough.

He took up position behind David and wrapped his arms around him. Evan could feel each breath David took and was suddenly struck by how good David smelled even - especially - when he was sweaty. He was almost caught off-guard when David suddenly made his move, trying to escape from Evan's grasp. His technique was all wrong, too sloppy and uncoordinated and a change from the progress he had been making, but before Evan could chastise him for it David suddenly stuck his leg back between Evan's and shoved outwards. They both went sprawling onto the mat. David started to scramble away with a triumphant laugh but Evan growled and pounced before he could get a foot away. David tried to squirm out from under him but Evan too strong and soon had him firmly pinned. They were both breathing heavily and Evan suddenly realized that he was hard and that his erection was pressed firm against the crack of David's ass.

"Huh," David said, lifting his hips slightly. "Well, that's new."

Evan rolled off him and scrambled a few feet away. "Um," he said, and "Okay, I can explain." He scratched the back of his neck and looked at the door, the ceiling, the stained-glass window, and just about anywhere but David. "That's, ah, a perfectly normal reaction to adrenaline and some friction. It happens to lots of guys."

"Oh really," David said with an amused gleam in his eyes. "That's a shame."

"It is?" Evan said, at which point he started paying attention to David and David's body again and noticed the tent in David's shorts. "Aha."

"Yeah."

Then they both were moving, scrambling towards each other and leaning in to kiss. They bumped noses instead, but the next try went a million times better. It was hard and slick and messy, their teeth scraping and tongues tracing across their lips. Evan pulled David closer and slid his hands under Dave's shirt, eliciting a moan. Dave returned the favor but in the opposite direction, sticking his hands past Evan's waistband to cup his ass.

At that point Evan remembered what a horrible, horrible idea it all was, not so much because of professionalism - _that_ was clearly blown away - but because they only had the room reserved for another ten minutes and Heightmeyer's yoga club would start trickling in at any moment. Quite a few of them might appreciate the show, but Evan wasn't really into exhibitionism.

"Hold on, hold on," Evan said. He pulled back from David. "We can't do this here."

"Huh?" David looked at him wide-eyed. "Right, right. Not here." They stared at each other and for a wild moment Evan seriously considered discovering just how fast they could get off, but then the tension was broken by his stomach rumbling loudly. They both laughed and sat up, safely separated by a foot of space.

"I think," Evan said carefully, "that we could grab a bite to eat, then head somewhere a little more private where we could take some time to...." He trailed off, unsure as to exactly what David might be up for and not wanting to push.

"Discuss this in more detail?" David suggested.

Evan gave him a dirty smirk. "Or something like that."

Dinner was... well, whatever dinner was, it was completely unremarkable, in no small part because Evan and David wolfed it down as fast as they could. Then Evan lead the way back to his quarters, where they could get some privacy and, equally if not more important, lube. They started stripping the instant the door hissed shut.

"I would just like to say," David said as he pulled off his shirt to reveal muscles that, if far from bulky, were still well-defined in a wiry way, "that if you had mentioned that you were gay we could have been doing this a lot earlier."

"I couldn't tell," Evan pointed out.

"Yes, that's unfortunate." David chuckled and dropped his shorts and underwear in one go. He was already half-hard, his uncut cock long and slim just like the rest of him. Evan swallowed hard and started undressing faster while David kept talking. "You see, despite the dead Wraith, I rather enjoyed being manhandled the other day."

"Yeah?"

"Oh yes. It was a bit embarrassing to be running to the gate with an erection, not to mention awkward."

"Well, if it's manhandling you want, I think I can help," Evan said with a deep, husky voice.

He finally got his last sock off and he closed the distance to David, gripping his arms and kissing him. Evan maneuvered them back to the bed and managed to get them down on it with a half-controlled fall that left David pressed to the mattress beneath Evan. David let out a pleased whimper and Evan took just a moment to smirk before turning his head so he could lick and nip his way along David's jaw. David liked that, too, showing his appreciation with a breathy moan and a thrust of his hips. Evan pressed back against him and soon they were rutting against each other, cocks pressed together between them.

Then David pushed Evan up away from him and said, with a careful and deliberate tone belied by his lust-filled eyes, "I want you to fuck me."

"Fuck," Evan said, and then, "Just a second."

David huffed impatiently when Evan rolled off of him and reached for the nightstand. The lube was right at the top and with a few moments' rummaging to shove his spare sidearm out of the way he found a condom too. David grinned at him and lay back with his legs spread wide. Evan applied a liberal amount of lube to his fingers and prepped David's ass as quick as he could without doing a bad job and looking like an impatient jerk. One finger went in, then two, then David was making needy noises and Evan knew that he wasn't the only impatient one around.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Less talk, more cock," David snapped.

Evan found himself blushing as he hastily rolled the condom on and lifted David's legs over his shoulders, because he'd had no idea David could even talk like that. Evan lined himself up and then entered David, sliding in nice and easy until his balls were pressed against David's ass. He held his position there for a moment.

"Oh," David said, "that's good."

"Yeah," Evan sighed. David was tight and hot and every other cliché you could think of. Evan started to move again, first with gentle movements to test what David liked, short strokes or long, this angle or that one; then with more forceful ones as David's gasps and murmured encouragement told Evan that right now he liked it hard and deep and hitting that spot right there. Evan was happy to let go and pound into him, releasing pent-up urges too long contained. The room filled with the sound of quiet moans and soft grunts and skin against skin. All too soon Evan was coming with low, drawn-out gasps; he had to fight to keep himself from collapsing and braced himself with David's legs.

"Evan," David whined needfully. His cock was lying against his stomach, red and dripping. Evan licked his lips and bent down to take it into his mouth. It didn't take much, just a gentle suck and a lick around the head, then David was crying out and shooting. Evan swallowed his load and kept sucking until David was soft again.

Evan stretched out alongside David and gave him a brief, gentle kiss. "Like that?"

"Oh, yes," David said with a contented grin. "I liked that very much."

"Cool." Evan smiled softly. "Think this could be something we do often?"

"If you want to." David frowned slightly. "And if it's safe for you. I wouldn't want to put you at risk."

"Don't worry about it," Evan said. He idly ran his fingers through the light patch of hair on David's chest. "Sheppard's an old friend, he knows all about me. As long as we're discrete, I'll be fine."

"I can do discrete, given this kind of motivation."

"That settles it, then." Evan's hand trailed further south to an entirely different patch of hair. "Think you'll be up for fucking me later?"

David chuckled. "I can manage that, yes."

They lay there side by side for a half-hour or so, taking the time to explore one another's bodies until they started to grow hard again. Then David put his fingers to work and proved every bit as good with them as Evan had imagined, stretching Evan wide and finding his prostate. Evan was practically a puddle of goo before David even slipped inside of him; he came while David fucked him slow and gentle and expertly stroked his cock.

They rinsed off in the shower, playfully cleaning each other up, and then regretfully said their goodbyes. David didn't even have his regular uniform with him and if anyone saw him leave in the morning it might raise too many questions. Evan hoped there would be other nights that they could spend together, although knowing Atlantis those nights would be few and far between. Still, they had just more than proved spending the night wasn't necessary at all for a bit of fun and companionship, and Evan knew a couple people who had a hard time getting even that with their lovers. When he went to bed that evening he did so happy and contented and slept easily.

First thing the next morning - well, third, after going to David's quarters for blowjobs in the shower and the mess for waffles - Evan made his way to Sheppard's office. The man was there for once, which saved Evan the trouble of tracking him down. Evan waltzed right in without knocking and closed the door behind him, knowing from the look of concentration on Sheppard's face that he was probably playing a game instead of doing something genuinely important. Evan sat down and staring unblinking at Sheppard until the colonel was unnerved enough to look up from his game.

"Do you need something, Major?" Sheppard asked, while his computer demanded that he construct additional pylons.

"I just wanted to let you know that I might be needing a new scientist," Evan said.

Sheppard's eyes widened. "What? Don't tell me he really was traumatized. Elizabeth will kick my ass if you broke a scientist already."

"No, no!" Evan hastily replied, although given the dazed expression David had been wearing after their shower it was possible Evan had in fact broken him. "He's actually doing great with his training, and I highly recommend he continue to go off-world."

"Just not on your -" Sheppard broke off. "Is that a hickey?"

Evan felt his face grow red. "Um. I hope not."

"It is!" Sheppard crowed. "Well, well, well. Someone's gone and violated regs by fucking his scientist. You should be ashamed of yourself, Major."

"Why do you just assume that's what happened?"

Sheppard grinned. "You're absolutely right. I shouldn't assume that just because you're an airman and he's a scientist that you were on top."

"Christ. I should have known you'd be like this," Evan groaned, and before Sheppard could continue to pry like the fifteen-year-old girl he was Evan added, "We took turns."

"That's something I like about you, Lorne. You're always willing to be equitable." Sheppard sat back and studied Evan. More seriously, he asked, "You're worried about this affecting your judgment off-world?"

Evan nodded. "A little bit, yes, sir."

Sheppard tapped his fingers on the desk a few times. "Honestly, I don't think you're the sort to have a problem. Still, I get why you're concerned. How about this - we don't stick a permanent scientist on your team but rotate missions specialists as needed. If Parrish needs to go off-world, you'll take him; otherwise he stays here. It'd help us cover some of the more important escort missions that we can't send a lieutenant on and give more of the civilians off-world experience."

"That might work, sir," Evan said after thinking it over for a minute. It would keep David out of the combat missions and add a bit more variety to what the team did, while letting Evan keep an eye on David when he did go off-world. It seemed fairer than removing David from the off-world lineup entirely.

"We'll give it a shot, see how it works out." The seriousness disappeared from Sheppard's voice and he smirked. "Just try not to sleep with the other scientists. I don't want to have slap-fights breaking out over possession of you."

"I'll do my best, sir," Evan said with a straight face. He stood up. "That's all I needed, sir. Unless there was anything you want to discuss while I'm here?"

"Naw, I'm good," Sheppard said with a wave.

"I'll see you this afternoon at the staff meeting, then."

"Huh? Oh, right. That."

Evan sighed. "I'll come get you, sir, just in case you get caught up in your... work."

"You do that, Lorne. Now get." Sheppard frowned, and muttered, "God damn it, who blew up my carrier?"

Evan left with a bounce in his step. With his concerns now safely discharged, he could now deal with more important matters, like whether he could drag David out of the lab for lunch. Maybe they could sneak in a quickie in a supply closet. He'd heard those were fun.


End file.
